Reviewed by USGSChile39y ago
M5.4 earthquake 111 km NE of Calama, Chile
Tuesday, May 12, 1987, 16:12:37 UTC · 21.694°S, 68.222°W
A magnitude 5.4 earthquake struck 111 km NE of Calama, Chile on Tuesday, May 12, 1987, 16:12:37 UTC, at a depth of 77.9 km (intermediate). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.5 on April 7, 1987.
- Magnitude
- 5.4
- Moderate · mw
- Depth
- 78 km
- Intermediate
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- —
- No ShakeMap
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 75 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
2 kilotons of TNT
That is about 1/8 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 4 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
21 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Altiplano and South American plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: intermediate
78 km
Intermediate-depth earthquakes usually break inside a plate that is sinking into the mantle. Shaking spreads over a wide area but is gentler at the epicenter than a shallow quake of the same size.
Did You Feel It?
Where it was felt
No “Did You Feel It?” reports have been published for this event yet. If you felt it, you can add your report on the USGS website.
I felt it — report to USGS ↗USGS PAGER estimate
Who was exposed to shaking
USGS publishes PAGER impact estimates for significant earthquakes, usually within an hour. No PAGER estimate is available for this event.
After the main event
Aftershocks within 75 km
USGS lists 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.2 on June 1, 1987. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 302 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.2121 km SSE of San Pedro de Atacama, ChileDecember 9, 1950 · 256 km S of this epicenter
- 7.751 km W of Atocha, BoliviaNovember 29, 1957 · 177 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.3136 km WSW of Challapata, BoliviaJune 6, 1915 · 274 km N of this epicenter
- 7.334 km NE of Tocopilla, ChileDecember 21, 1967 · 180 km W of this epicenter
- 7.334 km S of Iquique, ChileFebruary 23, 1933 · 242 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.2Near the coast of Tarapaca, ChileOctober 4, 1940 · 298 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.278 km SW of Colchani, BoliviaOctober 4, 1910 · 128 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.1136 km E of Iquique, ChileJune 14, 1959 · 158 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 28 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 2,392 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1877M8.3
Off North Coast
10 May 1877 · 237 km away · intensity XI
2,385 deaths$2 million damagetsunami
- 1953M7.4
Northern
7 Dec 1953 · 67 km away
3 deaths$7 million damage
- 1967M7.5
Northern
21 Dec 1967 · 132 km away
1 deathModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1976M7.3
Pozo Almonte, Oficina Victoria, Arica
30 Nov 1976 · 149 km away · intensity VIII
1 deathModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1959M7.5
Bolivia-Northern Chile
14 Jun 1959 · 149 km away
1 deathLimited damage (under $1M)
- 1950M8.0
Chile-Argentina
9 Dec 1950 · 214 km away · intensity VII
1 death
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.